Happy National Chocolate Day!

It's National Chocolate Day! To celebrate the awesomeness that is chocolate, here's the recipe for the chocolate pound cake that appears on the cover of my first cookbook, CakeLove: How to Bake Cakes from Scratch. Try warming slices of this cake lightly buttered on a frying pan... absolutely heavenly.

Chocolate Pound Cake

from CakeLove: How to Bake Cakes from Scratch

Dry Ingredients:

10 oz. (or ~2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour

2 oz. (or ~1/2 cup + 2 tsp) unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tbsp turbinado sugar

1 tsp potato starch

1/4 tsp vanilla powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

Liquid Ingredients:

4 oz. (or ~1/2 cup) sour cream

3/4 cup whole milk

2 tbsp brandy

1 tsp vanilla extract

Creaming:

8 oz (or 2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature

24 oz. (or ~3 cups) extra-fine granulated sugar

4 large eggs

3 large yolks

Directions:

1. Preheat the over to 350 degrees. Set the rack in the middle of the oven.

2. Set out the ingredients and mixing bowls, a standing mixer, and one 12-cup Bundt pan.

DRY: Sift the four directly into a bowl on a scale for accurate measuring. Measure the other dry ingredients into a separate mixing bowl, add the flour, and whisk for 10 seconds to blend. Set aside.

LIQUID: Meaure the liquid ingredients into a separate bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

CREAMING: Measure the butter and sugar in separate bowls and set aside. Crack the eggs and yolk into separate bowls and set aside.

3. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on the lowest speed for 2 to 3 minutes.

4. With the mixer still on the lowest speed, add the eggs one at a time followed by the yolks, fully incorporating after each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl.

5. Add the dry ingredient mixture alternately with the liquid mixture in 3 to 5 additions each, beginning and ending with the dry mixture. Move swiftly through this step to avoid overworking the batter. Don't wait for the dry or liquid mixtures to be fully incorporated before adding the next. This step should take a total of about 60 seconds.

6. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl all the way down. Don't miss the clumps of ingredients hiding on the bottom of the bowl. Mix on medium speed for 15 to 20 seconds to develop the batter's structure.

7. Prepare the pans. For a bundt cake, spray the pan well with a nonstick spray.

8. Fill the pan about three-quarters full by depositing the batter with the rubber spatula in small clumps around the prepared pan instead of by pouring it into one spot. Level the batter with the rubber spatula.. Bake for 50-55 minutes.

9. Once the top of the cake doesn't jiggle in the center, test for doneness by inserting a bamboo skewer in the center of the cake. When the skewer shows just a touch of crumbs or comes out clean, and the color is an even medium brown, the cake is done. Remove the pan from the oven and cool for 5 - 10 minutes. Remove the cake by inverting the pan onto a flat surface. Allow to cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes) before serving.